Harford changes fiscal year to July-June; outdoor facility built at Rocks Ridge [50 years ago]

The Harford County Commissioners decided 50 years ago this week to adopt the new July 1 to June 30 fiscal year starting in 1964. Legislation passed by the General Assembly made it mandatory for all political business divisions in Maryland to change their fiscal year by 1966 to coincide with the federal fiscal year.

The Maryland State Department of Parks built a new outdoor facility for group gatherings on Rocks Ridge in Rocks State Park. The new 60-foot long pavilion had a seating capacity of 100 people. The shelter also included two stone fireplaces at either end, electric lighting and rough timbered roof supports. The fee to rent the new facility is $10 per day. The next construction project for the convenience of park users was a new concession stand to be completed in August 1963.

Miss Harford County, Carolyn Wright of Forest Hill, won the title of Miss Maryland. Wright swept each of the three categories, placing first in the talent competition, the swimsuit competition and the evening gown competition. A graduate of Bel Air High School, Wright would move on to the Miss America pageant to be held in Atlantic City, N.J., over the Labor Day weekend. The prizes won by Wright included a $1,000 Pepsi Cola scholarship, a $500 wardrobe designed for her by John Simms, a portrait painting by Howard Brady, a hat certificate by Millinery Institute and a handsome trophy from S&N Katz-Castleberg, Hamilton.

A can of corn packed in Harford County in 1885 was opened by the National Canners Association. The 78-year-old can was found to be in excellent condition by laboratory personnel. The can of "Silver Brand" sweet corn was packed by the late George Silver at his factory on his "Silverdale Farm." This property fronted on the Priestford-Dublin State Road. The can was found with other foods in the attic of an abandoned grocery store in Newport, Pa.

Three teenage boys, two from Bel Air and one from New Jersey, were made to clean up trash along the Woodland Drive in Worthington Heights. The three had been taken into custody by Deputy Sheriff Herman Schweers the previous night because of complaints about the youths upsetting garbage cans. The youths were released on the condition that they clean up the mess and personally apologize to the residents.

The Bel Air Fairgrounds was host to the annual Guernsey Breed Field Day. There were 71 animals shown, with multiple awards going to breeders from Harford, Baltimore and Cecil counties.

The newly remodeled Southern States Bel Air Cooperative would be celebrated with a gala this weekend 50 years ago. The housewarming would feature unique displays, free gifts, special prizes and refreshments.

Fred Tracy, sales manager for Elite Products of Bel Air, won a quarter of a million Green Stamps and the Standard Perpetual Sales Cup. He received both for the achieving the greatest percentage of increase in sales covering a five-month period.

Mayor Werner Buchal of Bel Air received the first Certificate of Achievement Award by the Bel Air Chamber of Commerce. The new program was just established to honor local citizens who made a worthwhile contribution to civic projects.

There was a surplus of single men in Harford County in 1963. There were 189 single men locally for every 100 single women. The findings were based on marital figures gathered from all parts of the country by the Department of Commerce. The reports showed that the number of single men and boys in Harford County over the age of 14 amounted to 8,181, while the number of single women and girls in the same age bracket was only 4,318. The figures also show that 69.3 percent of the men and women of marriageable age in Harford County were married. Nearly half of the girls would be brides by the time they were 20 and the men would be grooms around the age of 22.